militarywikiaorg-20200222-history
10 Field Squadron (Air Support) (United Kingdom)
|branch = *Corps of Royal Engineers|dates = 1939—1939 1940—1964 1964—1993 2004—2013|role = Military Engineering|size = Squadron|command_structure = 39 Engineer Regiment (Air Support)|nickname = 10 Fld Sqn|battles = World War II *North African Campaign *Allied Invasion of Sicily *Italian Campaign Operation Banner Operation Telic|website = 39 Engineer Regiment Page}}The 10th Railway Engineer Squadron, known operationally as 10 RW Squadron. The squadron was first formed during the pre-war expansion of the army in 1939 just before World War II. The squadron was finally disbanded in 2013 following the initial Army 2020 reforms. History Pre-War and WWII On 3 September 1939, the squadron was formed at GHQ, Longmoore Camp. Just a little after forming, the squadron was disbanded.Niehorster, Leo. “Aldershot Command.” Aldershot Command, British Army, 03.09.1939, http://niehorster.org/017_britain/39_commands/aldershot.html.Watson and Rinaldi Page 151 In May 1940, the squadron was reformed in the Middle-East known as 10th Railway Construction and Operations Company (10 RW Cons and Op Coy). By July the squadron was based at RAF El Daba, supporting the RAF squadrons there. While based, the squadron was tasked with supporting the RAF squadrons through railway construction and support operations. Just a little after this, the squadron was moved to Sudan after being replaced by another company. By 1943, the squadron was renamed as 10th Railway Construction Company. In October 1943, following the Invasion of Sicily and eventual movement into mainland Italy, the company was assigned to the 1212th Railway Construction Group. Following the end of the war, the company was based in Trieste and later Austria. Post War In 1947, the company moved to Egypt and assigned to the 10th Transport Regiment. Later, the squadron was assigned to Headquarters Railway Group in the Suez Canal Zone and then later the Middle-East Transport Regiment in 1954. By May 1955 the company moved to Longmoor and was assigned to the 16th Railway Training Regiment. In June of that year, the company was reduced to a cadre but by September was reformed and renamed as 10 Transportation Squadron. After reforming, the squadron joined the former regiment the 16th. Just a few weeks after, the squadron was reorganized as a Port for FARELF (The Far East Land Forces). After reorganizing, the squadron moved to Singapore seems to have become independent after this move. During this time, the squadron was administered by the 17th Port Transport Regiment. During this time, the squadron maintained in independent troop in Hong Kong. By 1960, the squadron was assigned to the Engineer Base Group, Singapore. In 1964 the squadron was disbanded and their role taken over by the Royal Logistic Corps.Watson and Rinaldi Page 244 In 1964 the squadron was disbanded and concurrently reformed that same year as 10 Field Squadron (Airfields). The squadron was formed at Invicta barracks in Maidstone under 36 Engineer Regiment. The squadron was formed with the original intention of supporting the troops based in Aden. The squadron was infact from No. 5004 RAF Airfield Construction Squadron which had been reformed under the Army control. In August the next year, the squadron moved to RAF Khormaksar and assigned directly to British Forces Aden. In October that same year, the squadron moved location to RAF Sharjah in the UAE. After moving, the squadron was renamed as 10 (Gulf) Field Squadron. By January 1969 the squadron moved back to Longmoore and assigned to the 37th Engineer Regiment. After moving back, the squadron was used as harrier air support squadron. In 1969 the Harrier had just been introduced, this was one of the newest and very first VTOL operational planes. It was found that after an examination, the harrier jet worked much better in groups instead of individually. This created a need for a Harrier Support Group, this formation was the result of the 1966 Defence White Paper. From February to April of 1971 the squadron deployed, minus one troop, deployed to Gibraltar on an emergency tour. And in April, minus the same one troop, deployed to Honduras. The one troop that had been left behind, "A Troop" had deployed to Northern Ireland as part of Operation Banner from October 70—January 71. By January 1973 the squadron moved to RAF Laarbuch in Western Germany. After moving, the squadron was assigned as one of the RAF Support units. By 1982 the squadron moved to Mansergh Barracks in Gutersloh under 38th Engineer Regiment. Finally, in December 1992 the squadron became "non-operational" and was disbanded in July 1993. Modern Day On 26 February 2004 following the Delivering Security in a Changing World reforms of 2003, the squadron was reformed as 10 Field Squadron (Air Support). The squadron was based at RAF Leeming and assigned to 39 Engineer Regiment (Air Assault). The squadron later deployed on Operation Telic II from June—November 2003. The squadron was finally disbanded on 22 May 2013 following the initial Army 2020 reforms.Watson and Rinaldi Page 274''Watson and Rinaldi ''Page 278 References Sources * Watson Graham E and Rinaldi Richard A. The Corps of Royal Engineers: Organisation and Units 1889-2018. Tiger Lilly Books ISBN 9781717901804 * 10 Squadron, Squadrons, Royal Engineers - at british-army-units1945on.co.uk http://british-army-units1945on.co.uk/royal-engineers/squadrons/10-squadron.html